As Long as it's Talking with You, Talk of the Weather Will Do

Spring only means one thing to me. Via SlashFood

Happy First Day of Spring! (Although this particular tail-end of winter has felt more like June!) This freakish weather, albeit energizing and completely glorious, has me a little concerned. But first let me luxuriate is its awesomeness:

It’s lovely to see the crowds of commuters shrugging off their winter layers to expose bare arms and necks again. I’ve broken out the wedges and the sundresses the past couple days, and waking up to sweet-smelling summer air filling my bedroom is one of my favorite things in the world. There’s something about sitting in a patch of sunny grass or a bar patio with a sweaty can of beer and my favorite people that is spectacularly nurturing to the soul.

Now onto examining the weirdness: according to Tom Skilling, March hasn’t had a warm spell like this in 141 years of weather reporting, essentially when meteorology started. AKA in ever. His recent blogs over at ...are pretty much just waxing poetic over how many records this weather is breaking. Like I said, I’m loving every second--it makes me want SnoCones and lemonade (+gin), but then a looming, global warming-related fog seeps into my brain and makes me worry about our Earth and the environment, Catholic guilt-style.

 Unusual weather has such an impact on flora and fauna; just like late frosts can totally knock produce harvests out of whack, I’m left wondering what the effect of early-blooming plants and trees will be. And then the honeybees! What’ll be their deal in all of this? I’ve been scouring the internet trying to find some speculations from farmers, apiculturists or even other meteorologists on what gives with these warm temps, but my searches have come up tragically short. Maybe in the weeks ahead will reveal more as to what this weather is doing to plants and harvest. In the meantime, you can find me at the beach with a margarita.

So spring is supposed to signify this big cycle of rebirth, where we examine the patterns we’ve been stuck in, and unthaw our minds and bodies from the habits that no longer serve us. But with such a mild winter, have we experienced that seasonal “death” that allows for starting anew? Each passing year, I’m becoming more sensitive to the weather--Chicago winters are becoming harder and harder on my psyche--so this past winter was a welcome break from dismal, biting city-cold.

We are cyclical beings, with moods and hormones and biorhythms, and supremely sensitive to disturbances in the balance. So this spring, bringing things into balance will be a big theme of mine, just in case we've missed out on any digestion of the previous cycle's experiences. I'm already busy making lists, organizing my thoughts and decluttering my mind and environment while invigorating my current healthy habits and setting into motion the things I want to do. I feel a renewed creative energy the past couple weeks, and so many positive things have been manifested during that time simultaneously.

Anyway, this Spring/Summer will bring:

- More frequent blogging (yay!)
- Travels, even small ones
- Bees - Pottery class!
- Teaching yoga and other explosive creative collaborations
- New ink

Speaking of yoga and creativity, I have an amazing workshop in the works for my teacher training thesis. Details to come!

 Anyway, I'll leave you with a side-obsession most likely stemming from my fascination with fairy tales: hindu mythology for children. Pixar animator Sanjay Patel created The Little Book of Hindu Deities, along with The Big Poster Book of Hindu Deities, both of which I want so hard.

I Work Out.

Four weeks ago I started running.

I'll say it again: Four weeks ago I started running. Me. And no taco trucks have been involved. Yet.

Today marks the halfway point of 5k 101, a little running app I downloaded to get my ass to run (jog?) three point whatever miles without stopping, and I gotta tell ya, I'm. Fucking. Loving it.

It all started when K from the chocolate shop started talking about a beginning jogging program. She started doing intervals of walking and running, and then would lenghten the jogging times while shortening the walking times as the weeks progressed.

Now I'd been thinking about running for a while. That's what I do with things that take my interest: I think about it a whole lot, read about it, information-gather. Then I start preparing the accouterments, cause I gotta do it right. Then, finally, I might give it a go. This process ensued with running; figuring out which program I wanted to follow, downloading the app, acquiring some sweet kicks, a little moisture-wicking running shirt, some good earbuds. Only then did I take my first tentative steps.

The human body endlessly fascinates me. How magnificent, how adaptive and plastic. And soft and hard and scruffy and smooth. And the bones! The sweet, protruding hip and wrist and shoulder bones. (I mean, ASIS, ulnar styloid process and acromion.) Daren says that bones love to be touched--they're remarkable sensitive and don't get touched often (Really, how often do we touch our bones? Stifled laughter here.)--but he never mentions how lovely it is to touch bones.

I've seen yoga change bodies, and I've seen my own body transform through yoga; the whittling of my thighs and tummy, the development of my arms to allow me to hold a killer chaturanga, the muscles in my back form lovely, toned curves and valleys to make it my now-favorite part of my physical self.

Running has created similar changes, though not so visible. It came easier to me than it ever has before; I've rarely been out of breath--breathing hard, yes, but never panting or gasping for air. Around Week 2 I began running through the walk/rest intervals. Then in Week 3 I ran 20 minutes and it felt amazing!  I felt alive and empowered and indestructible, until my knees began to ache something craycray the next morning. I read that one of the mistakes beginning runners make is training too hard, too quickly. The respiratory adapts faster than the musculature of the body, so it's easy to push yourself too hard when you're gauging how you feel by how heavy you're breathing. As a yogi whose exercise was done barefoot on a mat for the past 3 years, my joints were not having the impact. So I took a week off, visited Fleet Feet to get some shoes that fit my stride (My name is Raquel, and I'm a moderate over-pronator.) and hit the pavement once more, stronger than ever.

Now for what it does for my mind: Running clears my head like yoga, and gives me that juicy, hard workout that my body craves. Now yoga can deliver a hard workout, no doubt. Gimmie five sun salutes and tell me otherwise, I dare you. But the simplicity--one foot in front of the other--the rhythm of my steps, my heartbeat, the music, it all creates something glorious and conducive to the moving meditation that I love so much about vinyasa flow. When you simultaniously lose yourself and connect with clarity. Ahhh, beautiful.

So that's how running is going: meow, unstoppable.

In other beautiful news, I just received a message containing these words:
"You seem like a supernova, so gorgeous and strong and amazing."
Sometimes we forget who we are until someone reminds us. I will remind someone of their true nature today.